Rasat (Culture)

The Rasat are a group of nomadic peoples historically from the Vessonian Badlands region of western Vessa. The name of the Rasat means 'Wanders', and derives from the name of their traveling capital of Rasat e ilea. The Rasat people live primarily within the nation of Vessa, with some nearly 29,000 living in the badlands alone, making them a significant minority within the rebel held territories. Additional Rasat can be found in Cartois, and Calas especially around their borders with Vessa, in addition to small permanent populations settled in Hera, and Rotharia. Rasat pilgrims can be found around the world working as traveling merchants, mystics, fortune tellers, and entertainers.

While the Rasat are generally disliked by the residents of most nations they visit, they have become a generally accepted part of life in Vessa, and the general degree of hospitality they have been met by within the nation has encouraged most to settle the nation as their permanent home. Members of the Rasat rarely ever settle down permanently, and if they do they typically live reclusive lives away from prying eyes, where they are free to practice their brand of mysticism in peace, free from potential persecution. Regardless, most Rasat live the entirety of their lives on the road, only living in semi-permanent 'Way Camps' for one or two months out of the year.

Physical Description
Individuals of Rasat descent typically posses dark skin ranging from dark tan to black, dark hair, and typically dark eyes though hazel or green eyes are not unheard of. Most Rasat are tall on average, but have no common build with both slender and strong body types being common. Most Rasat will typically adorn a large number of tattoos (Usually Glyphs), and wear or carry many trinkets or jewelry, such as rings, bracelets, or charms. These are typically enchanted in some manner, or are used as a vessel for enchantment should they encounter a Blood Forge.

Society
The Rasat live in a loose, anarchistic society with no larger structure than local tribes, or caravans which travel across the world. There is believed to exist nearly 2,000 individual caravans across the world, with the average caravan carrying somewhere in the range of 40-100 people. These Caravans typically consists of as few as 4 Wagons, and as many as 20 including custom made wagons designed as mobile homes for entire families. These caravans act as travelling communities, with members helping each other by proving labor, education for children, or acting as priests and mystics.

A Rasat family is Matriarchal, with the mother typically acting as the head of household, while the father and eldest sons are tasked with hunting or foraging to help provide food for the family. Rasat families include extended members, and can often balloon to include a dozen or more people who typically all live in one or two over sized wagons. Most Caravans will travel during the day, and set up camp during the night, where wagons can be unpacked, and a rather substantial camp can be set up in mere minutes. Rasat camps, called 'Way Camps', are substantial, often being mistaken for permanent settlements. In these camps, tents and drapes are typically extended from the unpacked wagons, extending the wagon out into a small house for its owning family. Rasat will typically stay in these camps for two days to rest and scavenge for supplies, before returning to the road. During these periods of rest, some members of the Rasat welcome outsiders in to their camp, and offer to sell to them some of their many trinkets, and enchanted items. Though most are little more than oddities or toys, now and then one can get their hands of items of some substance in a Rasat trinket stand.

The Rasat are a generally peaceful people, with crime being highly looked down upon within their society. As a result of this, a criminal Rasat is indeed a very rare things, though their reputation as of late has been tarnished by a growing scam where individuals will pose as members of the Rasat and attempt to pawn of phony enchantments for exorbitant sums of money -- needless to say, almost no Rasat would ever dare sell a false enchantment, to do so would be an insult to their entire people. While the Rasat are generally distrusted by outsides, the Rasat themselves also generally distrust strangers. While it is unlikely that one of the Rasat would assault a traveler without cause, they generally are skeptical, and weary of non-Rasat. Typically you will find it hard to enter a Rasat Camp unless you are in dire and apparent need of help, or if there is a stall in the camp selling goods -- in which case you should expect to be watched and followed at all times.

Rasat e ilea
While there exists no collective or united government for the Rasat, they do share a strong sense of camaraderie between individual caravans, and will often cooperate, or even temporarily join with one another should they be traveling the same path. Such events are referred to as a 'Procession of the Sands', and are quite the event to behold. There does exist, however, the 'city' of Rasat e ilea, or "The Wanderer's Abode". Once a year, usually around September, dozens of Rasat Caravans from Vessa, Calas, and Cartois will gather centrally in the badlands, and for the duration of the month establish a long term camp. During September, the Way Camp of Rasat e ilea blooms to become the largest singular settlement in Western Vessa, with nearly 60,000 Rasat and a further 5,000 visitors. Rasat e ilea is one of the few Rasat Way Camps which remains entirely open to the public, and hundreds of merchants selling exotic spices, foods, luxuries, and most importantly of all, enchantments all line the makeshift streets of Rasat e ilea. The camp has been described as 'never sleeping', that there is always activity at any time of night, and that each and every street of the camp are like the busiest bazaar in the world.

Despite the city reaching its peak during September, it continues to exist at a reduced scale for the remainder of the year. Typically consisting of around 5,000 people, Rasat e ilea actually travels freely across the badlands, allowing the permanent residents of the city to trade between cities within the badlands. On rare occasions the city has been known to cross through the badlands entirely, and set up camp near the city of Roza, or even more rarely cross over entirely into Cartois, where it is seldom welcome. During this period the city is typically supported through sales to the largest communities it settles near, in addition to funds donated from the thousands of traveling caravans, and sales made locally by visitors.

Religion
While individuals members of the Rasat are free to practice what ever religion they wish, the vast majority practice a form of Mana Mysticism unique to their culture. In the Rasat variant, the human soul is but part of a larger soul from which all life is descendant. Mana flows free on the winds, seeking out 'vessels' to inhabit and possess, allowing the mana to give birth to a new life and express the will of the 'Mother Soul' upon the material world. The Rasat believe that when one dies their soul is returned to the Mother Soul as their mana returns to the winds to flow free until it arrives its next vessel.

Life, to the Rasat, is a cycle of pleasure and pain, of joy and fury. Any emotion that can be experience will be experienced, and the centuries of memories and knowledge one gains in their life will carry with them burned into their very soul itself. The Rasat not only believe in past lives, but if you were to ask one, they could likely recite many of them to you, including names jobs, and loved ones quite vividly. While the Rasat's Mysticism is not openly persecuted in Vessa, and most neighboring countries, it is often looked down upon as simple superstition and often openly mocked. In many foreign nations some elder Rasat attempt to make ends meet by offering 'Spirit Readings' wherein the mystic will 'read' ones soul, and provide details of their past lives, and what their future may entail. The questionable nature of such spirit readings have been called into question by many Rasat elders and Mystics, and have done little to help the people's reputation abroad.

While the Rasat do not typically welcome outsiders, they often espouse an obligation to 'Assist brothers of the Soul', referring to common descent from the Mother Soul. Rasat caravans have become rather famous, and respected for providing assistance to wayward travelers in the badlands of Vessa, where overheating and dehydration can frequently take a severe, often deadly toll. The Rasat, additionally, are no strangers to combat, and are perfectly capable of fending off roving bandits who may harass them or other travelers.

Enchantments, and Trade
The Rasat are famously fond of enchanted items, often carrying with them dozens of trinkets, and occasional items of some substance. These items will typically do little more than provide a breeze on a hot day, or fill a glass with water, but some items have significant purpose in combat or in general use. These trinkets and items often fetch high prices from traveling soldiers, mercenaries, or adventurers who are wowed by the presence of so many enchanted items which are generally extremely rare.

Many Rasat caravans make the bulk of their income from the sale of the trinkets, which are usually manufactured within the caravans by a Blood Smith, of which each caravan typically carries at least one. The burden of Blood hosting is typically shared equally by the community to lessen the physical burden of the host. In addition to these enchanted trinkets, the Rasat will also participate in peddling, selling, and haggling general goods to travelers, as well as with the markets of what major cities they pass through, seeking to supplement their income, and help support and improve the caravan for the future.